What to Know
- A 5-year-old boy accidentally shot his young brother with his mother's gun
- The 4-year-old victim died hours after the shooting
- His mother is charged with a weapons violation and endangering the welfare of a child
The jailed mother of a 4-year-old boy who was accidentally shot and killed by his 5-year-old brother as the older boy played with a gun in their New Jersey home will be allowed to attend a private viewing before the boy's funeral on Friday.
Itiyanah Spruill, 22, will be escorted to the viewing before the 4-year-old boy is laid to rest, according to the Essex County prosecutor's office. She is not expected to be allowed to attend the funeral.
The boy was killed when his 5-year-old brother accidentally shot him in the head while playing with the gun in their East Orange home Saturday morning, authorities said. It's not clear how the brother got the gun, which belonged to Spruill.
The child underwent surgery for a head wound at University Hospital in Newark but died about three hours later.
Spruill, who was home at the time of the shooting, was arraigned Tuesday on child endangerment and other charges. She wept in the courtroom but did not speak nor did her relatives.
